Oil futures edged lower Thursday, struggling for support a day after the Federal Reserve signaled it would go much slower in cutting interest rates next year.
Price moves
-- West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery CL.1 CLF25 fell 16 cents, or 0.2%, to $70.42 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The more actively traded February contract shed 23 cents, or 0.3%, to $69.79 a barrel.
-- February Brent crude BRN00 BRNG25, the global benchmark, was off 24 cents, or 0.3%, at $73.15 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.
Market drivers
The Fed on Wednesday delivered a widely expected cut of 25 basis points, or a quarter of a percentage point, but signaled it was on track to deliver just two more rate cuts of the same size in 2025 and forecast inflation will remain sticky.
Treasury yields jumped following the decision, with the 10-year rate BX:TMUBMUSD10Y pushing back above 4.5%, while stocks sold off sharply. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA slumped more than 1,100 points, while the S&P 500 SPX dropped 3%.
Read: Why stocks and bonds slumped - and market volatility soared - after Fed meeting
The Fed's hawkish shift dampened an early rebound in oil prices that had been supported by data that showed lower-than-expected U.S. oil inventories, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank, in a note.
"The Fed's cautious stance, coupled with a weak demand outlook and ample supply, lent further strength to the bears. We anticipate rangebound trading within the $67-$70 per barrel range," she wrote.
-William Watts
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